Kathleen H. Pritchard, 81, author of an authoritative encyclopedia 
on the Swiss clock and watch industry, died Oct. 13 2005 of liver failure 
at the Manor Care nursing home in Bethesda. She was a resident of Bethesda.

Mrs. Pritchard was born in the silver mining town of Cobalt, Ontario. 
She graduated from the University of Toronto in 1945 and received a master's degree 
in fine arts and museum work from Radcliffe College in 1947.

She worked as a librarian at the National Gallery of Canada in Ottawa, 
the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and, from 1976 to 1989, 
at Satellite Systems Engineering in Bethesda, the firm her husband, Wilbur Pritchard, founded.

In the 1950s, she lived in Sudbury, Mass. 
In 1960, the engineering company her husband worked for purchased an Italian firm. 
He was sent to Rome to head up the acquisition. 
Mrs. Pritchard took with her a crate of peanut butter, fearful that she wouldn't 
be able to find the staple in Europe for her children.

From 1962 to 1967, she lived in Pacific Palisades, Calif., and then moved 
to the Washington area. She was active in the League of Women Voters in Massachusetts, 
California and the Washington area, and she served on the boards of the Montgomery County chapter 
and the National Capital Area League of Women Voters. 

She chaired the regional organization's transportation committee and was the 
Montgomery chapter's newsletter editor.

With her husband, she collected precision clocks and watches. 
She was a volunteer at the National Association of Watch and Clock Collectors' 
museum in Columbia, Pa., and from 1982 to 1992 was a trustee of the museum.

Although reference works existed for British, French and American watch and clock companies, 
Mrs. Pritchard was annoyed that there was no such book for the Swiss industry. 

She decided to tackle the job and spent 20 years compiling information. 
In 1997, her 1,800-page, two-volume book, "Swiss Timepiece Makers, 1775-1975," was published. 
It covers more than 2,000 Swiss firms.

In 2000, Switzerland's Musée International de l'Horlogerie honored her with the Prix Gaia, 
a prize for outstanding work in the area of timekeeping.

She was a member of St. Francis Episcopal Church in Potomac.

Her husband died in 1999. A son, Hugh Pritchard, died in March.

Survivors include two daughters, Sarah M. Pritchard of Santa Barbara, Calif., 
and Ruth W. Pritchard-Kelly of Silver Spring; a sister; and four granddaughters.

James J. McGurrinLabor Lawyer

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/10/19/AR2005101902349_5.html

http://www.ordiecole.com/chauxdefonds/pritchard_1924_2005.mht

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